Migraine Headaches - Need Cure

[JudyJB]

Does anyone have an over-the-counter cure for migraines? I have been having them in the afternoon for the past week or so. Had them years ago, but very seldom since. And they have been made worse by all this sunny weather.

I have been mostly sitting indoors with my shades drawn and the light on my computer turned down. Tried aspirin, but that did not work. I hate to dig into my Vicodin supply for just a headache, but they are driving me nuts.

I'm headed to Phoenix on Friday morning and might try to find an urgent care center for something by prescription.

[Redetotry]

I do hypnosis for migraines Judy and have done it over Skype, once for a doctor who was disabled from them with very good results. Hypnosis doesn't work for everyone but it can't hurt to try and no side effects involved

[Rufflesgurl]

When my daughter used to get them in high school and college, she was prescribed Darvocet (I think that was the name). Potent stuff but did the trick. She only needed one for it to work. She hasn't had a migraine for years.

Good luck - the ER or urgent care will help you.

Linda

[Acadianmom]

I have had migraines off and on since high school. I have never really been to a doctor for them but took one medication years ago that made me sicker than the migraine. Sometimes I can figure out what is causing them. The drugs that are prescribed for osteoporosis cause them for me so quit taking them. The latest thing I have tried was to stop eating chocolate and a lot of cheese. If I get one I usually wake up with it during the night. I take aspirin and get a ziplock bag with a little ice, wrap it with a wash cloth and put it on my head. Good luck with finding something that helps. I find that if I don't get enough sleep that will sometimes give me a headache.

Martha

[avalen]

I used to get migrains often when I lived in Colorado but not so much in Arizona. Glare caused alot of them, the kind you get from shiny chrome or very bright snow or very white and bright conditions. I had a prescription from the doc called cafergot, but now I just do the
aspirin with a cup of coffee, its the caffeine that does something mixed with the aspirin and that helped as well as taking a nap in a dark
room. My migrains are very mild now and I very seldom get them but the over the counter stuff I take is a mixture of aspirin, acetaminophen
and caffeine. I just went and looked, Excedrin Migraine is the stuff. Hope you get some relief soon.

[judi]

The pain of a migraine headache is caused by cerebral vasoconstriction. If you have tried OTC remedies and nothing is working you really need to see a physician. Caffeine is a vasodilator, and many people use it as a way to nip an on-coming headache. It works best when used before the pain gets too bad. If I feel like I'm getting a headache I drink a Pepsi. That is the only time I have Pepsi! I used to have terrible migraines but they went away after I got divorced. Ok ok, it was the stress of the whole thing! Anyway, try having an nice really cold Pepsi when you feel like you might be getting a migraine. I hope it works for you.

[Redetotry]

Check your blood pressure sometimes bad headaches are caused by blood pressure being too high.

[JudyJB]

No chocolate!!! Can't bear that. I have been checking my blood pressure, and it has been fine. I tried the cola/caffeine trick also, and it did not seem to help. Not sinuses as I can breathe through my nose fine.

I guess I need to get into the urgent care place when I get to Phoenix on Friday afternoon. It is driving me crazy to have to stay indoors in the dark when it is so nice outside.

Years ago when I was having these, I went on a very low dose of an anti-depressive and that did help. Might have to try that again. I stopped them a long time ago. I don't know why they decided to come back. I have had one almost every afternoon around 2:00 pm and lasting until evening. I will look one up and then try to leave here early in the morning on Friday.

FYI: I have known of several people who got rid of "headaches" (literal and otherwise) when they got divorced!

[Lopo]

I was just going to say that a friend takes a light dose of prozac for them, and it helps. Since they're not really "headaches," the usual headache cures don't work. I hope the urgent care doctor will help you. In my experience with two different urgent care places here, they're great - sort of like family doctors used to be.

[gingerK]

When I feel a migraine coming on I have to take my Excedrin. Btw, regular excedrin and the migraine form are the same. Mine are sometimes caused by too much bright sun and wind in my face or sometimes by a change in the weather. If they get really bad I can sometimes get them to ease off by taking a really hot shower with the water on my face. My grandmother had them and she would put heat on her face. My mom had them and she wanted cold cloths or ice. I guess I take after my grandmother, I want warmth. I have one of those headache masks but I have yet to try it. On Facebook, a friend sent me an idea for dealing with them: put your feet in warm water and an ice pack on the back of your neck. The idea is to constrict the blood vessels in the head because in migraines they expand, not contract. The warm water on your feet encourages the blood flow to the feet and reduces it in your head I guess. It's worth a try.

Judy, it sounds like you might be having a problem with low blood sugar if you get them everyday at the same time. Could you try to eat a little something and see if that helps?

And as for it not being sinuses, I don't feel like mine are blocked either, but when I get under the shower in the hot water they seem to open up. So I think that yes, they are blocked somehow just maybe not enough to make you feel like you can't breathe.

[Lopo]

Could they be caused by an allergy to the dust or something else? If so, or it is a sinus issue, a Neti pot could help to wash out the sinuses.

[Acadianmom]

Sometimes my nose will run when I have a migraine so might be sinus involved too. I don't know why mine come on in the middle of the night. Sometimes I can go back to bed with the ice bag and it helps. Other times I am up and down pacing. If they are really bad I throw up. My mother had migraines and now both my sons have them so must be inherited some kind of way.

Martha

[dayspring39]

Oh my Judy that is an uncomfortable place to be... mine went away with age... used to put me in bed for days with darkness... sometimes relief came when the sun went down... my neck and head ached for days after the headache went away...
Sorry I am no help at all... just a sympathetic voice...
Kathleen

[monik7]

I used to get them regularly when working. Since I stopped the everyday drudgery, haven't had one. However, I'm still so afraid of them if I even get a hint of a headache coming on, I take Excedrin Migraine and it seems to work. Just have to take it soon enough. When I was having problems while working, they put me on a light dose of antidepressant. I would NEVER take that again. The main reason being they can cause weight gain and didn't seem to help anyway. Since you get them at the same time each day, I think you should analyze that aspect. I found I would get a headache every Saturday at 3:30 pm. It was because I drank coffee everyday during the week, but not on the weekend which caused a withdrawal headache on Saturdays. Those stopped when I weaned myself off so much coffee during the week.

Good luck. I hope you can find a solution.
Sandi

[judi]

Ginger, during a migraine the blood vessels on the surface of the brain constrict, not expand. I have taken care of patients in a neurosurgery ICU that has such serious migraines that they had temporary paralysis of upper limbs. That is very rare, but it happens. Heat and caffeine dilates the vessels. Excedrin works well because it contains caffeine.

Redetotry, you are correct about the blood pressure and headaches. If you have headaches or migraines you should find out what your BP is. Changes in barometric pressure can bring on migraines, as well as bright light and sun. I would urge anyone who have migraines to see their physician if they cannot make a connection to a cause. There is help available!